Fiona Phillips’ husband gives sad update on how her Alzheimer’s is progressing
Fiona Phillips and Martin Frizell attend the Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards in Partnership with TSB at The Grosvenor House Hotel on October 31, 2016 in London, England. The show will be broadcast on ITV on Tuesday November 1st at 8pm. (Photo by Dave J Hogan/Dave Hogan/Getty Images)© Reach Publishing Services Limited
Martin Frizell, the husband of TV presenter Fiona Phillips, has given a sad update on how Fiona’s Alzheimer’s is progressing.
The world was shocked when the popular TV presenter revealed she had been diagnosed with an early onset form of the condition, after attributing her symptoms to menopause.
The former GMTV star experienced brain fog, anxiety and a lack of interest in her marriage, and three years ago, aged 61, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, which both her parents also had.
Fiona is planning on releasing a memoir called Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer’s later this year, with the help of Martin.
Now, Martin has given an insight into what caring for someone with Alzheimer’s is like.
“It is January 2025 as I write this, and Fiona needs a lot of help. She needs help showering and brushing her teeth. She can do these things physically, but is unable now to think about how she should do them,” he said in Fiona’s memoir, which the Daily Mail is publishing extracts from.
“I wash Fiona’s hair because she wouldn’t know what shampoo or conditioner to use or how wet her hair needs to be or that she must rinse the soap suds out afterwards…
“And most nights I’ll say, ‘Right, we need to brush our teeth before we go to bed,’ and I’ll put the toothpaste on the brush and hand it to her.
Fiona Phillips and Martin Frizell attend the funeral of Derek Draper at St Mary the Virgin Church, on February 2, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)© Reach Publishing Services Limited
“She is still very stubborn and doesn’t like brushing her teeth or feeling that she is being told what to do, so she rails against it.”
Martin has to help Fiona with other types of daily tasks. “She can put clothes on, but may not put them on the right way around, so she does need help dressing.
“I try to lay out clothes for her to put on in the morning, but she tends to get attached to particular items of clothing and will wear them over and over again,” he wrote.
Fiona and Martin first met through their jobs. They both worked for GMTV, and it was love at first sight, with Martin proposing to Fiona just four weeks after they started going out.
They got married in Las Vegas 1997 and share two children together. Martin gave up his high-profile ITV job last year in order to care for her.
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